Flying

I stopped paying serious attention to fashion years ago. But just out of curiosity, I do check with younger colleagues every now and then to see whether my Ray-Ban aviator sunglasses are in or out of style. I'm told they're in again. That makes at least six cycles since I bought them. By the time you read this, it could be seven.

Have you ever looked around a corporate jet and wished you had more room? Room perhaps to transport not only your closest advisers but also dozens of staff members, in a space the size of a large home? That's what private customers for Airbus' mammoth A380 will have.

The very light jet industry wasn't exactly flying high last year. A major supplier told me last summer that he expected half of all VLJ makers to fold soon. By the end of 2007, he looked clairvoyant; first the Aviation Technology Group suspended work on the two-seat Javelin and then, early in 2008, after sputtering for almost two years, Adam Aircraft shut its doors.

As if getting sick abroad weren't bad enough, add to that the possibility of being quarantined or placed in isolation when you come home by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ("Quarantine" refers to the separation of people who have been exposed to an infectious disease and might be contagious. "Isolation" is the separation of people who already exhibit symptoms.)

Ending protracted speculation about how it would address the aging fuselage cross section of its large-cabin business jets, Gulfstream Aerospace last month unveiled the G650. The model will topple the G550 from its perch as the biggest Gulfstream business jet when it enters service in the first half of 2012. (At least initially, however, the G650 will not replace the G550.)

Since being certified in 2004, this $17 million midsize jet has become one of Cessna's most popular models. One reason is that it can carry eight passengers almost 2,700 miles. Another is that it can take off and land on short runways. and then there's its intentionally simple suite of technologies, which helps minimize maintenance costs and down time.

The transition from office or home to the cabin of a private aircraft should be effortless and comfortable. With that in mind, designers and engineers continue to seek ways to make business jet cabins as plush and inviting as the environments you've come to appreciate on the ground.

Granted, it's relatively slow for a jet and has limited range. But the 328JET is also a modern, fuel-efficient aircraft with a roomy cabin that climbs quickly and can land on short runways. Plus, it's priced about equal to-or in some cases even less than-what you'd pay for a new turboprop. if it fits your typical missions, it's a model you really ought to consider.

If you fly often via business jet charter, you know that the peak travel days sprinkled throughout the calendar can mean a limited choice of aircraft as well as price increases. But a little planning can go a long way toward minimizing both drawbacks.

Ferry fees have always been part of fractional flying. Now, however, some fractional providers have made changes to their programs that substantially reduce-if not eliminate-the fees for their owners. As a result, these owners enjoy expanded ferry-fee-free travel horizons, and the other fractional providers' may find they need to respond in kind.